Arbitration | High Court's Location Doesn't Become Arbitration's Seat Just Because HC Appointed Arbitrator : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday (September 23) has held that mere conduct of arbitral proceedings at a particular place does not, by itself, determine the juridical “seat” of arbitration, in the absence of an express designation or agreement between the parties. A Bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva set aside the Orissa High Court's judgment, which had deemed Cuttack...

Weaponizing Sections 11 And 16: Judicial Trends On Dilatory Tactics In Indian Arbitration

In India, arbitration is the most overpriced and time-consuming process for dispute resolution. This phrase became very popular amongst the members of the bar and bench, in recent years. The intent of the legislature to make India a hub of arbitration by introducing timelines right from invoking arbitration to parties completing their pleadings and in last pronouncement of the award by the Arbitrator. Furthermore, the legislature has introduced Section 11 and Section 16 the Arbitration and...

Why Arbitration Council Of India Still Not Taken Off?

In February 2026, the Government told Parliament what the arbitration bar already knew: the Arbitration Council of India has not been constituted as yet. The admission was brief, almost routine. It should not have been. Parliament wrote the Council into the statute book in 2019, gave it a head office in Delhi and a mandate to shape the future of Indian arbitration, and then left the chair empty for close to seven years. India has spent that time announcing its ambition to become a global...

'Arbitration Cannot Be Arbitrary' : Supreme Court Sets Aside Arbitral Tribunal Appointment For Lack Of Consent

The Court quashed the attachment orders passed by the Tribunal noting that the Tribunal's appointment was non-est.

Conditional Deposit Won't Stop Interest If Award-Holder Can't Freely Withdraw It: Supreme Court

A deposit pending appeal is not synonymous with payment to the award-holder, the Court stated.

Why Indian Government Losing Faith In Arbitration?

On 03.06.2024, Government of India, Ministry of Finance, issued an Office Memorandum[1] which send “shock waves” to certain portion of legal community engaged in arbitration. The OM, in a nutshell, mentioned that:1. None of the advantages that arbitration was expected to provide-Speed, Convenience, Technical Expertise, and Finality, were being achieved. Arbitration had simply become an additional layer and source of more litigation. 2. Government as a disputant is subject to large number of...

Beyond Winner And Loser: Reimagining Section 9 In Post-Award Stage

An arbitral award is understood as the culmination of the arbitral process. The pleadings have been closed, evidence has been led and arguments have been heard before rendering an award. The award, however, often marks not the end of the dispute, but the beginning of a distinct post-award phase. The unsuccessful party may challenge the award under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 ("Arbitration Act"), while the successful party may move towards enforcement. Between the...

Composite Transaction Route To “Veritable Party”: Doctrine Still Finding Its Edges

Indian arbitration law has spent the last two years refining a single question when can a non-signatory be forced into or allowed to invoke an arbitration clause it never signed? The Constitution Bench in Cox and Kings Ltd. v. SAP India Pvt. Ltd. 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 1042, gave courts two distinct routes to answer this “group of companies” doctrine, which looks at corporate structure and conduct and the “composite transaction” doctrine which looks at whether a set of linked agreements forms a...

Arbitration Clause In One Agreement Can Bind Party To Another Instrument Forming Part Of Composite Transaction: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that where parties structure a single transaction through several interconnected instruments, an arbitration clause contained in one instrument can bind a party through another instrument that is expressly integrated with it, even if the latter instrument does not itself contain an arbitration clause. A Bench of Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice...

Institutionalizing Trust: Role Of Arbitration Council Of India

In lieu of the writ petition filed by the Anil Kalyandas Thanvi, the Supreme Court of India has sought a response from the Central Government regarding the establishment of an Arbitration Council of India (ACI). Although the provision for the establishment of said Council is provided for by the 2019 Amendment to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, six years have passed without any affirmative action in this direction. The petition draws our attention to the lapses and issues that exist...

When Can High Court Invoke Article 227 Against Arbitral Tribunal?

The Recurring QuestionOne question has consistently tested the boundaries of judicial intervention in arbitration, namely, whether a party dissatisfied with an order of an Arbitral Tribunal, typically one rejecting a jurisdictional objection under Section 16 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (herein after referred to as “the Act”), run to the High Court under Article 227 of the Constitution instead of waiting for the final award? The Supreme Court has answered this question...

Can Pre-Deposit Be Mandated To Invoke Arbitration? Supreme Court Refers To Larger Bench, Doubts 2009 Precedent

The Supreme Court on Monday (August 17) referred the question to a larger Bench as to whether pre-deposit conditions in arbitration clauses, requiring contractors to deposit a percentage of the claim amount before invoking arbitration, are valid. A bench of Justice Manoj Misra and Justice Manmohan expressed doubt about the binding nature of the three-judge Bench decision in S.K. Jain v....